The Press: Who Decides Fairness?

When it became a regulation in 1949, the Federal Communications
Commission's fairness doctrine was considered a boon for electronic
journalism. Now, in an important test case pending before the U.S.
Court of Appeals in Washington, the National Broadcasting Co. claims
that the FCC'S current interpretation of the rule will throttle
investigative reporting.

The doctrine originally freed radio and television from a 1940 FCC ban
on airwave editorializing and crusading. But it also required
broadcasters to give "reasonable opportunity for the presentation of
contrasting viewpoints on controversial issues." The FCC promised not
to...